Onstage/Offstage podcast seeks 10-minute plays on DEI

Website

Deadline: February 23, 2025 at 11:59 PM

Onstage/Offstage (www.onstageoffstage.org) is opening our call for submissions of 10-minute plays to produce and air on its podcast, now in its 13th year.

This year's theme is “Diversity/Equity/Inclusion.” We seek plays that center on the characters' struggle rather than the topic itself. Please make sure your submissions are character-centered. Also please read and follow these guidelines, especially submission acceptance dates, if you wish your play to be considered.

Please follow this format for file names:
OSOS2025_DEI_Yourlastname_Play title

Example:
OSOS2025_DEI_ONEILL_The Joys of Sobriety

By submitting, you agree to all the following requirements:
Selected plays will be broadcast on WRFI 88.1 Ithaca (NY, USA) Community Radio and podcast at our website and social media, Podbean, and other podcast hosts on a date of our choosing.
Please note: Playwrights are required to do a short interview to accompany their play.

SUBMISSIONS ARE WELCOME BY EMAIL ONLY FROM
12:01AM MONDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2025 TO 11:59PM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2025.

Send submissions to onstageoffstagepodcast@gmail.com

Selected plays will be cast, directed, rehearsed, and recorded by Onstage/Offstage Podcast artists.

HELPFUL TIPS:
-Do not submit plays that require extensive reading of stage directions. The work should be overwhelmingly dialogue.
-Has your play been produced before? WE DON'T HOLD THAT AGAINST YOU. SEND IT.
-THREE (3) characters maximum.
-Comedies and dramas welcome. **No monologues.**
-No excessively offensive language. Not that we are against strong language where appropriate, but we have to bleep it for public radio broadcast, and that's more work for us. The recording remains au naturel for the podcast.
-Plays must be roughly 10 MINUTES in length. 8-10 pages or so.


-Plays MUST BE IN PDF FORMAT with pages numbered and a cover page containing:
--Play title
--Playwright name
--Playwright contact info
--Synopsis/teaser
--One submission per playwright.
--We will cap submissions at 100.

-By submitting your work, you agree that Onstage/Offstage Podcast may produce, host, and air your work . You will, of course, have prominent credit.

-We'd love to remunerate you for your creativity, talent, and efforts to write and submit your work, but we are a very small operation and our funding is nil. What we offer is a chance to talk about yourself as an artist, and to have a sound recording of your play.

We will notify only those playwrights whose work has been accepted.

**We strongly encourage BIPOC and members of the LGBTQIA+ communities to submit!**

Best Medicine Rep Theater Company 2025 - 2026 Reading Series

Website

Deadline: February 28, 2025

Or until they reach 200 submissions

THEY HAVE MET THEIR SUBMISSION CAP DO NOT SEND

Best Medicine Rep Theater Company in Gaithersburg, Maryland is accepting script submissions for its 2025 - 2026 Reading Series, now through February 28, 2025, or until we reach 200 submissions. 

We are interested exclusively in small comedies with simple production demands. 

 No more than 5 actors. Doubling is fine, but please indicate who doubles for whom on the characters page. 

Go Try Play Write February 2025

Website

Deadline: February 28, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM

We're proud to announce a new monthly playwriting contest in collaboration with Bamboo Ridge Press. Every month, Kumu Kahua's artistic director Harry Wong III will select a writing prompt on the first day of that month. We're looking for 5-page monologues or 10-page scenes based on that prompt; the due date for submissions are always the last day of the month. All entries must be written in traditional play format; instructions on this format can be found here (https://www.dramatistsguild.com/script-formats), courtesy of the Dramatists Guild.

There will be one winner each month. Scripts will be submitted to the judges anonymously. Winners will receive $100 and a subscription to Bamboo Ridge Press. Woo!

The prompt for February 2025 is:

A hell of a prompt. Write a 10-page maximum scene or an 8-page maximum monologue where you send someone to hell. This is as open as can be—all that matters is that someone did something or a number of things that receives eternal punishment. Writers, consider this prompt primal scream therapy.

Best of luck!

Rogue Theater Festival seeks new works by emerging writers and artists

Now accepting new works for the seventh annual and uniquely hybrid Rogue Theater Festival! Rogue is looking for new works by emerging writers and artists to present live for an audience OR virtually for an audience. We encourage anyone who feels they have a story to tell to submit their piece to the festival. This year Rogue is proud to be accepting full length one acts for either Fully Staged or Staged Reading shows, Short Shows, and recorded shows of all lengths to stream. 

Basic Festival Details:

• Participants may choose to participate in our Live in Person Scenario whether as a staged reading or as a fully staged production (in person and live in NYC) or Digital Scenario (remote filming anywhere in the world and virtual presentation)
• Performances: August 4-10, 2025 (each full length show will have 1 performance and shorts shows 2 that will perform at The Flea in NYC and DIGITAL shows will stream all week via CUR8)
• All chosen shows will receive assistance in marketing, publicity, and helpful feedback
• Each LIVE show will get one technical rehearsal at The Flea in NYC
• Each DIGITAL show will give Rogue Theater Festival their edited piece to be inserted into a final package before presentation 
• Playwrights and Producers are fully responsible for putting up their production (e.g. Director, union contacts if choosing to use union members, rehearsal space, transportation fees, salaries, marketing, costumes, casting etc.).
• There is a one time, nonrefundable, participation fee. You do NOT need to pay to submit your play, only if you plan to participate in the festival. 
• Each show will need to sell a minimum ticket amount 

Entrance requirements:

• LIVE (staged reading) 45 minutes to 1 hour and 45 minutes long (no intermission)
• LIVE (fully staged) 45 minutes to 1 hour and 45 minutes long (no intermission)
• LIVE (short show) 10 minutes to 15 minutes long (no intermission) 
• DIGITAL 45 minutes to 2 hours and 30 minutes (no intermission)
• It may be a play, musical, improv piece, stand up comedy set, clowning routine, solo show, burlesque number, poetry, spoken word, song cycle, or dance. If you have something else we’d be thrilled to hear from you too!
• It must be an original work, but having been performed before is totally fine.

HOW TO SUBMIT!

Please submit your piece by visiting www.roguetheaterfestival.com and clicking on the “Submit Your Play” tab.

The deadline for all submissions is Saturday, March 15th. We will be reviewing all submissions and contacting selected participants on or before Monday, March 31st. 

If selected, there will be a one-time participation fee. LIVE (staged reading) participants ($225), LIVE (fully staged) participants ($450), LIVE (short shows) participants ($200) and DIGITAL participants ($100). These are non-refundable. Please visit our website www.roguetheaterfestival.com for more information and to get to know us better. Get ready to make a wave with Rogue in 2025!

RESISTING FASCISM ~ As Long As I Know How to Love by Tom Misuraca

Over 170 of Tom Misuraca’s short plays have been produced and stage read globally, often winning audience favorite awards. Most recently, his ten-minute play, Straight Acting, won the jury prize at Acting Out's Quare Tales in Ireland. Fourteen of his full-lengths have been produced in California, Las Vegas, Texas, Michigan, Utah and New York City. His most produced play, Geeks! The Musical, was produced Off Broadway in 2019. His full-length play, Pieces, was one of three finalists of Murphys Creek Theatre's 2024 Quill to Act Finalist Reading Series and read there in October. Then in November, he had five one-minute plays produced in a festival in Japan. 

ABOUT THE PLAY
As Long As I Know How to Love was a response to what the worst possible case scenario could be for the LGBTQIA+ community in these terrifying political times. In what I hope won’t be the not too distant future, William is glued to social media waiting to hear is yet another anti-LGBTQIA+ law is going to pass. While Alex is doing his best to brighten up the look and the feel of their home. Where William feels defeated, Alex is hopeful that no matter what happens in the outside world, they will continue to keep a home filled with light and love.

   

     ~ Excerpt published by permission, all rights held by the playwright.

If you enjoy a piece published in the RESISTING FASCISM project, we encourage you to reach out to the playwright to tell them so. If the playwright has not included an email address or website, let us know at info@nycplaywrights.org and we'll pass along your message.

                ALAN

The tides will turn, they always do. But in the meantime, we have to remain visible.

                WILLIAM

Protest until we’re thrown in jail?

                ALAN

That, and keep having fun. Keep going to the theater and singing along with frilly musicals. Keep antiquing and giving straight couples bad advice on how to decorate. Keep going on walks and exploring new neighborhoods. Keep brunching with friends.

                WILLIAM

I’m sure SCOTUS will ban brunch next. Citing they’re more dangerous that assault rifles! While those right-winged nuts keep on shooting up drag shows and people displaying pride flags.

                ALAN

Well a Pride flag will always fly outside our house. No matter how many times it gets stolen or defaced, I’ll replace it. Even if I have to Betsy Ross one 

myself. 

 

                WILLIAM

            (under his breath)

Hope you’re able to... 

 

                ALAN

And I’m just getting started. Like Shakespeare said, “As long as I know how to love, I know I will survive.”

                WILLIAM

That’s Gloria Gaynor. 

 

                ALAN

Close enough. For as long as I’m able, this house will be a home of love. For us, and for any friends who need shelter from the storm out there. As Gloria said: “How far that little candle throws his beams! So shines a good deed in a weary world.”

                WILLIAM

That was Shakespeare. 

 

                ALAN

He’s not as danceable.

               (beat)

So? You with me?

                WILLIAM

As Shakespeare said: “You had me at hello.”

-------

Fascism update: the Republican-controlled Senate confirms an anti-science anti-vaccination kook as Health Secretary 

Studio Players 12th Annual 10-Minute Play Festival

Website

Deadline: February 22, 2025 at 11:59PM EST

Or when they have received  300 entries

The 12th Annual 10-Minute Play Festival will begin accepting submissions beginning at NOON EST on February 15, 2025. Submissions received before this time will not be considered.

This competition is open to any playwright. There is NO submission fee, NO production fee. The judges will be members of the Studio Players theatre community: board members, directors, and patrons. The rules are simple and are as follows:

1. Any playwright may enter; please submit only ONE play per playwright. If a playwright submits more than one script, only the first one received will be considered and the others will be discarded.

2. The play must be a 10-minute play (meaning it will be approximately 10 pages of dialogue). If it’s a monologue/one-person piece, it should come in under 10 pages.

3. All plays should be emailed, with a separate cover page containing the following information: play's title, author's name, email address, mailing address and phone number. The play itself should only have the title and a brief synopsis; no identifying information should be contained in or on the 10-page script.

4. To be considered, each script must be received by 11:59 p.m. EST February 22, 2025.

5. The contest is open to the first 300 entries received.

6. Winning entrants agree to a full production of their scripts and video recording and presentation of their scripts.

That's it! The top 7 scripts (as determined by the judges) will be performed by active members of the Bluegrass theatre community. Each play will be a fully realized production; each performance will contain all the winning scripts. The 7 selected playwrights will each receive $250 in prize money.

The script selection process is anonymous and therefore we won't be posting notifications during the deliberations. We will announce the 15 finalists and 7 winners after the selection process is complete.

All entries should be sent to: 10minuteplayfestlex@gmail.com with "10-min Play Fest" in the subject line. Visit https://www.facebook.com/studioplayers for more information.

Message from the Dramatists Guild

This message is especially for those who have complained about NYCPlaywrights' RESISTING FASCISM project, writing to us that they loathe "inappropriate political chatter in what should be a forum for playwriting and ideas about theatre..."

No - not even those who think playwrights should be above politics will be spared in the long run.

Statement on the Kennedy Center's Cancellation of a Scheduled Production 

The Dramatists Guild of America is outraged by the Kennedy Center’s announced cancellation of its scheduled production of the show Finn by Michael Kooman and Christopher Dimond, both members of the Dramatists Guild. We find it appalling that the Center is backing out of their commitment to bring this joyful children’s musical, one that they commissioned and produced to much acclaim, to communities across the country. At its heart, Finn has a universal message of love and acceptance.
The new board of the Kennedy Center claims the show was cancelled for financial reasons, but we find that difficult to believe considering the ideological purge now being employed by the new administration, impacting every nook and cranny of the federal government.

This is coming at a time when The Arts have been specifically targeted for attack, as is pointedly reflected by the new “guidelines” for grants that were announced by the National Endowment for the Arts. The guidelines not only disqualify applicants who serve historically underserved communities, including those theaters that value diversity and inclusion in their productions, but they have also criminalized the process, if it is later judged that grantees have, in some way, violated the new vague and overbroad guidelines. It is an obvious ploy to chill speech and intimidate applicants in violation of the First Amendment.

These actions go beyond censorship. It may set the stage for a constitutional crisis that transcends parties and ideologies and cuts to the heart of our democracy.

We stand in solidarity with Kooman and Dimond, the Guild members who wrote Finn, as well as the writers of other shows still scheduled for the Kennedy Center, like Parade by Guild members Jason Robert Brown and Alfred Uhry, and Eureka Day by Guild member Jonathan Spector. And we stand with all the other writers of shows that will have productions canceled by theaters that will no longer be funded by the NEA.

We will, however, do more than just stand with them and issue statements. In collaboration with our non-profit affiliate, the Dramatists Legal Defense Fund, we intend to develop, finance and employ strategies to defend all dramatists from having their voices silenced.

As was stated in a legal brief 27 years ago, in the landmark Supreme Court case of NEA v Finley, “…art plays a critical checking function, providing alternative perspectives on the world and often challenging the status quo. This is why artists, along with universities and the press, are often the first targets of repressive regimes.”

Amanda Green

President

Dramatists Guild of America

RESISTING FASCISM ~ Stage Five by Alex Goldberg

Alex Goldberg is an award-winning playwright, screenwriter and director. His play It Is Done has been published and produced multiple times, recently winning four Stage Scene L.A. Awards for a production at Theatre40 in Beverly Hills. His one-act plays Annexing the Palisades and The Six Pianos of Miradero were commissioned by Antaeus Theater Company and available as radio plays. Seventeen of his plays have been produced across the country and on three continents.  He lives with his wife, actress Catia Ojeda, and their sons, in Burbank, California.

• www.alexgoldberg.net
• https://newplayexchange.org/users/7136/alex-goldberg

ABOUT THE PLAY
This play emerged as a very dark fantasy, a "what if" that would alter our political climate. As a citizen of the United States, I have been frustrated by what seems to be one faction of people who play by the rules while another group repeatedly breaks the law to achieve their needs. The side playing by the rules is currently losing... so what if they became the rulebreakers as well?

   

     ~ Excerpt published by permission, all rights held by the playwright.

If you enjoy a piece published in the RESISTING FASCISM project, we encourage you to reach out to the playwright to tell them so. If the playwright has not included an email address or website, let us know at info@nycplaywrights.org and we'll pass along your message.

                DR. JACKSON

You have a lot of anger.

                PATIENT

I’m dying! And I don’t have a lot of anger, just some anger... directed in a very specific

direction.

                DR. JACKSON

I think channeling anger is healthy. Especially at the end of life. There might be something we can do to help you channel your anger.

She picks up the phone and talks into it.

                DR. JACKSON

Yes, send him in. And-

            (to Patient)

Would you like a coffee?

                PATIENT

Sure. Sweet and Low. Ah screw it, what does that matter anymore? Two sugars.

                DR. JACKSON

                (on phone)

Coffee. Two sugars. Thank you.

She hangs up the phone. 

 

                PATIENT

I... if you are thinking therapy, I’m good. I’ve gone through that process and it’s helpful, but I’m not going to waste any more of my remaining time talking about how I feel.

                DR. JACKSON

I’m not recommending therapy.

The door opens and SMITH (male, any age)

enters, carrying a coffee and a briefcase. 

 

                DR. JACKSON

I’d like to introduce you to Mr. Smith. 

 

                SMITH

Good morning! Your coffee- 

 

Smiling, he hands her the coffee.

                PATIENT

Thank you.

                SMITH

My pleasure.

                DR. JACKSON

Mr. Smith is a specialist.

                PATIENT 

 

I’m not interested in seeing any other doctors, thank you.

                SMITH 

 

I’m not a doctor. I’m more of an end of life consultant.

                PATIENT

Assisted suicide?

                SMITH

That is illegal in this state.

                PATIENT 

 

I don’t follow. What do you consult about?

                DR. JACKSON 

 

I’m going to leave you two to talk confidentially. 

 

                PATIENT

I thought everything happening in this room is confidential. What’s going on?

                DR. JACKSON

I need to see another patient. I’ll be back.

            She opens the door and exits. 

 

                PATIENT

But- 

 

The door closes. Smith leans against the desk and smiles at Patient.  

 

                SMITH

Stage four.

                PATIENT

I’m not interested in more treatment. 

 

                SMITH

Six to eight weeks.

                PATIENT

            (sarcastically)

Gonna be a great party.

                SMITH

Have you considered your legacy?

                PATIENT

Aw man, are you trying to get me to leave what little money I have left to the hospital, or the cancer center? You think my limited savings is going to help cure cancer in someone else? You guys have no shame.

                SMITH

I’m not looking for your money. I’m talking about your legacy. How you will be remembered.

                PATIENT

I have no family, only an estranged sibling. I’ll be leaving my job. I have no pets. There will be very few to remember me, thanks for the reminder.

                SMITH

But that can change. If you want it.

                PATIENT

I don’t follow.

                SMITH

Naturally, you have some anger. Or else Dr. Jackson wouldn’t have called for me.

                PATIENT 

 

Not much anger. Just anger at a few certain individuals. 

 

                SMITH

A certain political figure?

                PATIENT

Don’t tell me you’re MAGA. I didn’t think this day could get worse.

                SMITH 

 

Oh, certainly not. I dislike him intensely. 

 

                PATIENT

Well, that’s something, at least.

Smith unlocks the briefcase and opens it, giving

Patient (but not the audience) a clear view of the interior. Patient looks in, and blinks.

--------

Latest in US Fascism: Republican traitors install Russian asset Tulsi Gabbard as head of American intelligence

NYCPlaywrights - no more Kennedy Center posts

Please be advised that since the fascist dictatorship has taken over the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, NYCPlaywrights will no longer be sharing information associated with that now-garbage organization.

Trump elected chair of the Kennedy Center by newly constituted board

To any reading this who voted for Trump - this is on you, fascist.

Emily D – Star-Crossed Employee

ABOUT THE SHOW:

Emily Dickinson may not be Build-A-Buddy Workshop’s star employee, but she sure as hell makes things interesting. An artist at herself, she fights against the store’s soul-crushing conformity until her “Employee of the Month” manager, Stacy, gives her an ultimatum: fall in line or get fired. Enter customers Tiffany and Brad who are celebrating their two (or is it five?) year anniversary. Once they step inside, the store transforms into a breeding ground for love, secrets, and vengeance – altering four lives forever.

CAST:
Emily Dickinson — Bre Tomey*
Stacy the Manager — Sarah Hogewood*
Brad — Pasquale Crociata*
Tiffany — Zoe Dean
*These actors are appearing courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association.

Emily D— is Directed by Ellie Handel and will feature Scenic & Prop Design by Rae Haas, Costume Design by Alison Gensmer, Lighting Design by Em Stripling, Projection Design by Juniper Stuart, and Sound Design by Jordan Bernstein. 

http://emilydtheplay.com

PERFORMANCES:
Sunday, February 23 @ 3:00pm
Monday, February 24 @ 7:00pm
Friday, February 28 @ 9:30pm
Sunday, March 2 @ 7:00pm
Tuesday, March 4 @ 7:00pm

LOCATION:

THE TANK - 312 West 36th Street, New York, NY 10018

Tickets link: https://thetanknyc.org/calendar-1/2025/1/16/dickinson

Strongbox Theater Short Plays Festival 2025

Website

Deadline: March 2, 2025

Email submissions to: info@strongboxtheater.com.

This short play festival is in keeping with STRONGBOX's mission to:
Foster a partnership between the arts and our community at large to raise the visibility of the arts in East Rockaway, NY and its surrounding Long Island area;

Assist new playwrights in getting their talents seen by and shared with our local audiences, and to 

Cultivate an appreciation of theater by new patrons.

There is NO FEE to submit your play to be considered for inclusion in this Festival. Playwrights may submit up to two (2) plays, with a separate application accompanying each submission.

SELECTION / PARTICIPATION / CONSIDERATIONS:

All plays submitted will be reviewed by a selection panel chosen by the Festival’s Artistic Director and Executive Producer,  who will also have input. Playwrights will be notified on or about March 7, 2025, if their play(s) has(have) been selected for inclusion in the festival.

Selected playwrights must submit a signed Participation Agreement by no later one (1) week following notification of selection. All selected playwrights will receive one (1) complimentary admission to each performance of their selected play(s).

The Strongbox Short Play Festival is hosted by Bethany Congregational Church in their social hall at 100 Main Street, East Rockaway, NY, which seats 150 patrons. So, our host’s congregation will be considered by the Festival Selection Panel when reviewing the language, situations, and themes in any play submitted. The Festival’s Artistic Director, and the Executive Producer reserve all final decisions regarding selection, content, staging, and running time to be presented.

All submissions must be original and unpublished (but our festival’s production of them does not have to be a premiere).

All production and publication rights will remain the property of the playwright. A flat $100 royalty will be paid to each playwright for each of their selected plays. Other than reviewing each submission for selection, no critical analysis or feedback will be provided by the festival to the playwrights regarding any play.

Ease of production is a prerequisite for all plays considered for production in this Festival. The stage is 18’ wide x 12’ deep, with folding screens to provide wings on stage left, center, and right, as required. A simple set footprint and minimalist production requirements (e.g., costuming, props, audiovisual, etc.) are non-negotiable. Acting blocks of varying shapes/sized and a basic lighting/sound plot will be used for all plays in the festival. Given the available resources, musical plays cannot be considered for this year’s Festival.

Plays submitted for the festival can run no longer than 20 minutes (if unsure, please use 1.1 minute per page for estimation), and regardless, brisk pacing is a prerequisite for producing them. Plays can be comedies or dramas (or somewhere in between), as well as monologues. There will be six (6) performances of each selected play @8:00pm on the following Fridays/Saturdays: May 2-3, 9-10 & 16-17, 2025.

Directors for all selected plays will be assigned by the Festival’s Artistic Director. We expect the program to include 6-8 plays, with their order to be determined by the Festival’s Artistic Director and Executive Producer. There will be an intermission.


SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:

A digital copy of your script in PDF format must be emailed to: info@strongboxtheater.com.

SUBMISSIONS MUST BE TIME STAMPED ON EMAIL (info@strongboxtheater.com) BY THAT DATE FOR CONSIDERATION

(Submissions via mail or hand-delivery will not be accepted);

Script pages must be numbered;

On the cover of your script, please include

• Play Title; 
• Playwright’s Name;
• Playwright’s Contact information [Address, Telephone Number & Email].
• On the second page of your script, please Include a character breakdown;
• Include the Setting where your play occurs and the Time it takes place (that could be used in any program);
• Provide a statement that the play submitted is original and unpublished.
• Provide a short biography of the playwright to be used for Festival promotion (if selected);

SELECTION CRITERIA

Solid structure (e.g., a “beginning, middle, and end;”)

Depth of characterization;

Quality of narrative and dialogue;

Dynamic vs. Static staging and/or concepts.

Entertainment value;

Additional weighting will be considered for plays that reflect the following:

Playwrights who reside in East Rockaway or neighboring communities (Hewlett, Lynbrook, Rockville Centre, Oceanside);

Playwrights who reside in the other areas on Long Island;

To help provide opportunities for diversity and inclusion in the arts: plays written by or that include characters and themes with women, people of color, LGBTQ+ and/or the developmentally challenged;

Plays that are topical and have societal impact

Gitelman & Good Publishers seeks full-length plays

Website

Deadline: February 28, 2025

Please consider submitting your full-length play for high schoolers on the theme of Difficult Choices. 

Three winners will be selected for an opportunity to have their submitted play published in the Gitelman & Good Publishers permanent catalog.

If you have a great full-length play for high schoolers that explores this theme, please read the submission guidelines below and send your submission to submit@gitelmangoodpublishers.com.

Artistic Guidelines. Please consider the following contest guidelines before submitting. We seek plays that...

• Explore the theme "Difficult Choices."
• Are challenging, beautiful, and fun.
• Are intended for high-school actors and audiences.
• Are full-length (greater than 60 minutes).
• Are unpublished.

Author Information. 

Please provide a bio or resume that includes:

• Name
• Email address
• Preferred gender pronouns (optional)
• Artistic statement, endeavors, and/or goals
• Production history (optional)
• Other relevant information (optional)

Writing Sample. Please provide the first ten pages or so of the script you’d like us to consider, as well as a short (~50 word) synopsis. Keep in mind the following guidelines:

• The title pages do not count toward the ten-page limit.
• The play formatting should be relatively standard.
• The file type should be PDF.

Contact Information
submit@gitelmangoodpublishers.com

Submission Fee: None

RESISTING FASCISM ~ Internal Exhile by Coleman

Harboring no regret, as a teen, Coleman fled Oklahoma. He is the author of an award-winning memoir (SPOKE) and a novel (KIDNAPPING HENRY KISSINGER). He has written more than 40 plays, with productions in Wisconsin, Iowa, Chicago, New York, Seattle and London. His work has been featured in numerous journals, including the Vassar Review and the Midwest Review, He is a member of the Dramatist Guild of America and is currently working toward an MFA in Writing for Screen and Stage at Point Park University.

ABOUT THE MONOLOGUE
Like many of us, I was reeling after the election, perhaps more numb than despondent, when I happened upon the Russian phrase for Internal Exile. It struck a chord and got me through those first days. I really thought that's all it would do - get me through those first days, but I'm still holding onto it and find myself in a writing frenzy. Yes, DT was bad for arts the first time around and will doubtless be worse the second. That just makes it all the more important that writers continue to write, that painters continue to paint, that poets continue to ... Well, you get the idea. We're going to see some beautiful art made these next four years. 

Author's website:
www.spokesinthewheel.com and - Coleman | New Play Exchange

     ~ Excerpt published by permission, all rights held by the playwright.

If you enjoy a piece published in the RESISTING FASCISM project, we encourage you to reach out to the playwright to tell them so. If the playwright has not included an email address or website, let us know at info@nycplaywrights.org and we'll pass along your message.

Russian artists have a phrase for it: vnutrennaya emigratsia, or internal exile. It’s how they have managed to survive under Putin. They can’t actually emigrate (well, most of them can’t anyway). So they emigrate internally. They exile inside themselves.

Some people have said that means they are escaping reality, but that’s not right. They know full well what their reality is. There is no hiding the reality of oppression. There is no escape from it. And yet ... these Russian artists defy that oppression by acting as though they are not oppressed. They write their stories, paint their paintings, craft their poetry, compose their music and sing their songs – without regard for the autocrats who would silence them.

Fuck the bastards.

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Fascism update: Wall Street Journal editorial calls Trump tariffs ‘dumbest trade war in history’ 

Fresh Fruit Festival 2025

Website

Deadline: February 20, 2025

APPLICATION FORM

Over 1 Week: March 24-30, 2025 up to 24 LGBTQ shorts will compete during three evenings of performances, with cash awards each night and a chance to participate in our Main Stage Festival later in the season. The application deadline for this 2025 10-Minute LGBTQ Plays is Feb. 20, 2025.

This full-format version of our traditional 10-Minute LGBTQ Play contest will be held at the famous Theatre for The New City on 1st Avenue near 14th Street.

HOW IT WORKS: Three evenings of 8 plays each, and the top two winners each night receive cash prizes and become Semi-Finalists moving on to our finals on the weekend. Winners are chosen by Audience ballots, plus a Judge’s technical pick will be added. A total of nine plays will compete in the finals for grand prizes, and the top 4 will later be part of our 2025 MAINSTAGE Festival. Basic set pieces and tech rehearsal will be provided, but all plays must be self produced and ready by competition day.

As with all our artist events, thanks to the Department of Cultural Affairs there are NO Submission Fees. EVER.

The Playwrights Group - whether you're a novice or a pro

The Weekly Workshop

Start the New Year off right! 

Join our nationwide community of playwrights on Zoom. 

It’s a great way to stay connected and motivated.

Participating in a weekly workshop can give you the kick you need to see your script through from beginning to end.  You can bring in anything you’re working on — a full length script, a musical, a TV pilot, whatever. And when your script is ready — we’ll present it in a Public Reading. We also bring in Guest Speakers, like Pulitzer Prize winner Margaret Edson (Wit).  

Sit in on a session and see for yourself!

Tuesdays or Thursdays 7 - 9:30pm EST

Check out our website for more details and rates. 

Script Consultations

If you don’t have time for the workshop but have a script you’d like some feedback on — just send a PDF of your script and you’ll get a critique via email and/or video conference. See website for rates. 

Richard Caliban has worked with  individuals on their scripts from all over the world — Indonesia, China, Greece, Australia, Serbia, as well as right here in New York. A script consultation will provide you with feedback on the structural soundness of your story, the dramatic arc of your protagonist, thematic unity and much more.

Online One-on-One Courses

If you’re looking for more, check out our One on One Online Playwriting Courses:

•       The Art of Playwriting

•       Write a Play in 10 Weeks

•       3 Hour Short Course 

All are with instructor Richard Caliban, and since it’s One on One, the courses can be adjusted to fit your level of experience. 

Please visit our website for further Info and Rates:  

www.theplaywrightsgroup.com

Contact us at 

scripts@theplaywrightsgroup.com

STILL starring Melissa Gilbert and Mark Moses - 25% Discount offered

WHAT IF... your old flame returns. Sparks fly...but there are secrets and surprises. 
And you just don't agree.

What happens if you love someone but you hate the things they believe.

STILL - by Lia Romeo, directed by Adrienne Campbell-Holt. With Melissa Gilbert (Litle House on the Prairie) and Mark Moses (Mad Men, Desperate Housewives). 

Now through 3/23 at the Sheen Center

18 Bleecker St. (Mott/Elizabeth), NYC

Discounted Tix at http://bit.ly/STILLtickets. 

Use code FRIENDS25 

To support STILL: https://bit.ly/STILLdonate

www.STILLthePlay.com